Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi
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Major General Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi |
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|---|---|
 |
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| 2nd Head of State of Nigeria | |
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In office 16 January 1966 – 19 July 1966 |
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| Preceded by | Nnamdi Azikiwe |
| Succeeded by | Yakubu Gowon |
| General Officer Commanding, Nigerian Army | |
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In office 1965 – January 1966 |
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| Preceded by | Major General Sir Christopher Welby-Everard |
| Succeeded by | Yakubu Gowon |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
3 March 1924 Umuahia, Abia State, Nigeria |
| Died | 29 July 1966 (aged 42) Lalupon, Oyo Nigeria |
| Nationality | Nigerian |
| Political party | None (military) |
| Spouse(s) | Victoria Aguyi-Ironsi |
| Religion | Anglicanism |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |
 Nigeria
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| Service/branch |
 Nigerian Army
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| Years of service | 1942–1966 |
| Rank | Major General |
| Unit | Commander, 2nd Brigade |
| Commands | Force Commander, ONUC |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
Major General Johnson Thomas Umunnakwe Aguiyi-Ironsi (3 March 1924 – 29 July 1966) was a senior Nigerian military officer and second Nigerian Head of State. He seized power in the ensuing chaos following the 15 January 1966 military coup, serving as the Nigerian Head of State from 16 January 1966 until his murder on 29 July 1966 by a group of mutinous Northern army soldiers who revolted against his government in what was popularly called the July Counter Coup.
Thomas Umunnakwe Aguiyi-Ironsi was born to Mazi Ezeugo Aguiyi's on 3 March 1924, in Umuahia-Ibeku, present-day Abia State, Nigeria. When he was eight years old, Ironsi moved in with his older sister Anyamma, who was married to Theophilius Johnson, a Sierra Leonean diplomat in Umuahia. Ironsi subsequently took the last name of his brother-in-law, who became his father figure. At the age of 18, Ironsi joined the Nigerian Army against the wishes of his sister.
Aguiyi-Ironsi enlisted in the Nigerian Army on 2 February 1942 and was admitted to and excelled in military training at Eaton Hall, England and also attended Royal Army Ordnance Corps before he was later commissioned as an infantry officer with the rank of Lieutenant on 12 June 1949. He soon returned to Nigeria to serve as the aide-de-camp to John Macpherson, Governor General of Nigeria, and he was assigned as equerry to Queen Elizabeth II during her visit to Nigeria in 1956, for which assignment he was sent to Buckingham Palace to train. During the Congo Crisis of the 1960s, the United Nations Secretary-General, Dag Hammarskjöld, appealed to the Nigerian government to send troops to Congo. Lieutenant Colonel Ironsi led the 5th battalion to the Kivu and Leopoldville provinces of Congo. His unit proved integral to the peacekeeping effort, and he was soon appointed the Force Commander of the United Nations Operation in the Congo.
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